Accurate financial tracking is critical for ensuring project success and financial transparency. With the new financials experience in ServiceNow Strategic Portfolio Management (SPM), users now have a more reliable and insightful way to compare actual costs with planned costs.

Previously, users relied on a financials view that displayed planned costs, actual costs, and the planned vs. actual variance for all fiscal periods. While this provided basic cost comparisons, it had several limitations that affected financial accuracy and forecasting.

The new Compare Baselines capability in the financials experience addresses these limitations, offering better visibility, accuracy, and control over financial data.

Challenges with the Previous Financials View

The previous financials experience, while functional, had some drawbacks:

1. Limited Usefulness of Future Actual Costs:
   • Since actual costs are only available for completed fiscal periods, displaying actual costs and variances for future fiscal periods provided little to no value to users.
2. Risk of Data Tampering:
   • Users could easily modify planned costs for past fiscal periods, making it possible to manipulate data to match actuals instead of maintaining historical accuracy.
3. Lack of Latest Forecast Visibility:
   • The previous view did not provide a clear picture of the latest forecasted cost, which includes both actual costs (for completed periods) and planned costs (for current and future periods).

How the New Financials Experience Solves These Issues:

The new Compare Baselines feature introduces significant improvements, allowing users to track financials with greater accuracy and reliability:

1. More Meaningful Cost Comparisons:
   • Users can now compare actual costs with planned costs only for past fiscal periods, eliminating irrelevant actuals for future periods.
   • Additionally, instead of just planned vs. actual variance, users can compare re-forecasted planned costs with the initially estimated planned costs, providing better insights into financial changes.
2. Improved Forecasting Visibility:
   • The new view enables users to see the latest forecasted cost, which includes:
     • Actual costs for past periods
     • Planned costs for current and future periods
   • This holistic view helps in better financial planning and decision-making.
3. Prevention of Data Tampering:
   • The system ensures that past planned costs remain unchanged, preventing users from modifying historical data to align with actuals.
   • This maintains financial integrity and provides an accurate record of budget performance over time.

Using Compare Baselines for Better Financial Management

To take full advantage of the new financials experience:

• Create a Financial Baseline before the project starts to capture the initial planned costs.
• Use Compare Baselines to track changes in financials over time and assess whether re-forecasted costs align with original estimates.
• Automate Financial Baseline Creation using the scheduled job “Create financial baseline for active projects and demands” to ensure regular updates without manual effort.

Why This Matters

By addressing the limitations of the previous financials view, the new Compare Baselines experience provides:

✔ More relevant and meaningful financial comparisons

✔ Improved visibility into the latest forecasted costs

✔ Protection against data manipulation for past fiscal periods

With these enhancements, financial tracking in ServiceNow SPM is now more accurate, transparent, and insightful, helping organizations stay on top of their budgets and financial performance. Start using the Compare Baselines feature today to take control of your project finances with confidence!